Speed of a Wave

[dhowe2909]

So the speed of a wave is dictated by the medium through which is travels. I have a question regarding the forumula v=(wavelength)(frequency).

Can this equation only be used to find wavelength or frequency for a given medium. (i.e. you can calculate wavelength from frequency and velocity or frequency from wavelength and velocity but not velocity from wavelength and frequency)? Or can you calculate the speed of the wavelength given the wavelength and frequency, but you can't change the velocity with a change in frequency or wavelength?

I hope someone understands the question if it's a little convoluted. Thanks and happy studying!

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[DrShoshana]

This is how I understand it. You can use that eqn to calculate velocity, frequency and wavelength. However, once you find velocity it is almost always going to stay constant.

 

[cur]

Or can you calculate the speed of the wavelength given the wavelength and frequency, but you can't change the velocity with a change in frequency or wavelength?

I hope someone understands the question if it's a little convoluted. Thanks and happy studying!

Yup! You can calculate the speed of a wave, which is traveling though an unchanging medium, if you know its wavelength and frequency.
If a given wave passes from one medium to another, its frequency will remain the same, however its wavelength and speed may change, if you don't know anything about the mediums you can't calculate the change, but you can tell if the wave increases or decreases speed, or if the wavelength gets longer or shorter.